Bois 1920

Bois 1920 is an artisanal niche perfume house based in Florence, Italy. Although the "1920" in its name points to a Florentine perfumery tradition from the early twentieth century, the modern fragrance brand was founded in 2005 by Enzo Galardi, who built it around the heritage and recipes of his grandfather, Guido Galardi [5].

The house produces eau de parfum and related fragrances, with a catalogue the company describes as spanning more than thirty compositions. It positions itself within artistic, niche perfumery, emphasising the quality of raw materials over conventional marketing, and remains active: it launched new fragrances in 2025 and exhibited at the Esxence trade fair in 2026 [3].

The brand's story begins with Guido Galardi, who in the early 1920s collected lavender — known locally as spigo — in the hills around Florence to experiment with his own scents. He opened a shop in the centre of the city called Bottega Italiana Spigo, which drew a following among local perfume lovers. The shop later closed, as Guido's son Renato did not share the interest and did not take over the business [5].

The family's perfumery was revived a generation later. Enzo Galardi, Guido's grandson, had entered the fragrance business in 1985, and in 2005 he created the Bois 1920 collection in honour of his grandfather, reinterpreting his original recipes [5]. The brand name carries that lineage directly: according to the retailer and editorial accounts that reproduce the company's history, "Bois" is formed from the initials of Bottega Italiana Spigo, while "1920" marks the year the original shop was established.

This makes the founding date a point of potential confusion. The brand's own About page frames 1920 as the foundational year, tied to Guido's shop [1], whereas editorial and retailer sources record 2005 as the founding of the modern Bois 1920 fragrance house under Enzo Galardi [5]. In encyclopedic terms, 1920 is best understood as a heritage reference rather than the modern brand's establishment.

The lineage traces to the 1920s and Guido Galardi's Bottega Italiana Spigo in Florence. The modern brand dates from 2005, when Enzo Galardi launched the Bois 1920 collection. In 2012 the house was selected among five fragrances recognised at the FiFi Awards in New York [1]. In 2025 it introduced two new fragrances, Art1920, composed by Arturetto Landi, and Pizzuta, by Mariaceleste Lombardo [3].

Bois 1920 presents itself as an artisanal Florentine house that reinterprets the Galardi family's heritage recipes while pursuing new olfactory directions. The company frames its work as a craft centred on the excellence of raw materials, describing each creation as "an alchemy, unique in its sensations, born out of an ancient perfume culture" [2]. According to the company, its fragrances are conceived to last persistently, combining what it calls tradition and innovation.

Editorial coverage characterises the house's approach as placing craftsmanship ahead of marketing, with woods such as sandalwood and cedarwood as supporting notes, resins such as benzoin and amber as unifying elements, and citrus and iris providing brighter accents [4]. The house is consistently described as operating within niche and artistic perfumery.

The brand's catalogue is organised into several collections and, by its own account, comprises more than thirty fragrances. Its signature and best-selling scents include Buontalenti, Frammenti, Paraná, Oltremare and Decisamente Rosa. Lavender — the spigo of the original heritage shop — recurs as a defining material, alongside sandalwood, cedarwood, benzoin, amber, citrus and iris.

Beyond its own lines, the company also distributes other fragrance brands and has acted as an Italian distributor for third-party houses.

In 2012, Bois 1920 was selected among five fragrances honoured at the FiFi Awards in New York [1]. Its 2025 releases drew press attention, including a feature in the Italian edition of Grazia covering the new fragrances Art1920 and Pizzuta [3].

Bois 1920 is active. The company maintains a regular schedule of launches, masterclasses and trade-fair appearances: it exhibited at Esxence in both 2025 and 2026, announced a distribution partnership with Jousset Parfums in 2026, and posted news updates into 2026 [3]. The house is based in Florence, with operations also recorded in nearby Scandicci [1]. Its current operating entity is identified on the brand site as ARNOWAY srl; no external parent company or acquisition is documented in the available sources.